It was back in 2021 when we first learned that former Superman Henry Cavill had been tapped to star in a new Highlander movie. The franchise has been on the shelf for years, but The Witcher has given the British actor a solid footing in the fantasy realm and fans started getting excited about seeing him pick up where Christopher Lambert left off.
In our last update, it was said that John Wick director Chad Stahelski remains attached to helm a movie which will serve as a modern retelling of Connor MacLeod's centuries-old feud with his fellow powerful immortals. They're fighting to the death in a bid to absorb each other's powers because - and we're sure the concept will be familiar to you even if you haven't watched the 1986 original - there can be "only one."
Today, Deadline is reporting that this new Highlander movie is officially moving forward at Lionsgate. Cavill remains attached to star, with Stahelski stepping behind the camera to helm what's sure to be some epic action. It's said the movie will boast a budget of more than $100 million, so it's clearly eyed as what everyone involved is hoping will be a new fantasy franchise.
While the SAG-AFTRA strike is still ongoing, the current plan is for cameras to start rolling next year.
The current draft of the screenplay was written by Mike Finch. Producers include Stahelski, Joshua Davis, Neal H. Moritz, and Louise Rosner.
"I think we have some very good elements now," Stahelski said earlier this year. "The trick is when you have the tagline 'there can only be one,' you can’t just kill everybody the first time," he explains. "I’ll say it for you first, our story engages a lot of the same characters and stuff like that."
"But we’ve also brought in elements of all the TV shows, and we’re trying to do a bit of a prequel, a setup to The Gathering, so we have room to grow the property."
Various iterations of a new Highlander movie have existed since 2008, with everyone from Justin Lin to Juan Carlos Fresnadillo attached at one time or another. Now, though, it feels like the prequel/reboot is actually happening, just as it was starting to feel like it might be another of those projects which end up trapped in development hell.
The strikes will have inevitably slowed things down, of course, but with both Superman and Geralt of Riva now in Cavill's rearview mirror, scheduling issues are unlikely to stop him from beginning work on Highlander the moment Stahelski is ready to get cameras rolling.